Introduction to Game Design, Prototyping, and Development : From Concept to Playable Game with Unity and C#

Addison-Wesley, 2014. — 944 p. — ISBN-10: 0-321-93316-8, ISBN-13: 978-0-321-93316-4. На англ. языке. Learn Game Design, Prototyping, and Programming with Today’s Leading Tools: Unity and C#. Introduction to Game Design, Prototyping, and Development is the first time that all three of these disciplines have been brought together into a single book. It is a distillation of everything that Gibson has learned teaching hundreds of game designers and developers in his years at the #1 university games program in North America. It fully integrates the disciplines of game design and computer programming and helps you master the crucial practice of iterative prototyping using Unity. As the top game engine for cross-platform game development, Unity allows you to write a game once and deliver it to everything from Windows, OS X, and Linux applications to webpages and all of the most popular mobile platforms. If you want to develop games, you need strong experience with modern best practices and professional tools. There’s no substitute. There’s no shortcut. But you can get what you need in this book. Award-winning game designer and professor Jeremy Gibson has spent the last decade teaching game design and working as an independent game developer. Over the years, his most successful students have always been those who effectively combined game design theory, concrete rapid-prototyping practices, and programming skills. 1.Thinking Like a Designer You Are a Game Designer Bartok: A Game Exercise The Definition of Game Summary 2.Game Analysis Frameworks Common Frameworks for Ludology MDA: Mechanics; Dynamics, and Aesthetics Formal, Dramatic, and Dynamic Elements The Elemental Tetrad Summary 3.The Layered Tetrad The Inscribed Layer The Dynamic Layer The Cultural Layer The Responsibility of the Designer Summary 4.The Inscribed Layer Inscribed Mechanics Inscribed Aesthetics Inscribed Narrative Inscribed Technology Summary 5.The Dynamic Layer The Role of the Player Emergence Dynamic Mechanics Dynamic Aesthetics Dynamic Narrative Dynamic Technology Summary 6.The Cultural Layer Beyond Play Cultural Mechanics Cultural Aesthetics Cultural Narrative Cultural Technology Authorized Transmedia Are Not in the Cultural Layer The Cultural Impact of a Game Summary Contents note continued: 7.Acting Like a Designer Iterative Design Innovation Brainstorming and Ideation Changing Your Mind Scoping! Summary 8.Design Goals Design Goals: An Incomplete List Designer-Centric Goals Player-Centric Goals Summary 9.Paper Prototyping The Benefits of Paper Prototypes Paper Prototyping Tools An Example of a Paper Prototype Best Uses for Paper Prototyping Poor Uses for Paper Prototyping Summary 10.Game Testing Why Playtest? Being a Great Playtester Yourself The Circles of Playtesters Methods of Playtesting Other Important Types of Testing Summary 11.Math and Game Balance The Meaning of Game Balance Installing Apache OpenOffice Calc Examining Dice Probability with Calc The Math of Probability Randomizer Technologies in Paper Games Weighted Distributions Permutations Positive and Negative Feedback Using Calc to Balance Weapons Summary Contents note continued: 12.Puzzle Design Puzzles Are Almost Everywhere Scott Kim on Puzzle Design Puzzle Examples in Action Games Summary 13.Guiding the Player Direct Guidance Indirect Guidance Teaching New Skills and Concepts Summary 14.The Digital Game Industry About the Game Industry Game Education Getting into the Industry Don't Wait to Start Making Games! Summary 15.Thinking in Digital Systems Systems Thinking in Board Games An Exercise in Simple Instructions Game Analysis: Apple Picker Summary 16.Introducing Our Development Environment: Unity Downloading Unity Introducing Our Development Environment Running Unity for the First Time Setting Up the Unity Window Layout Learning Your Way Around Unity Summary 17.Introducing Our Language: C# Understanding the Features of C# Reading and Understanding C# Syntax Summary 18.Hello World: Your First Program Creating a New Project Contents note continued: Making a New C# Script Making Things More Interesting Summary 19.Variables and Components Introducing Variables Strongly Typed Variables in C# Important C# Variable Types The Scope of Variables Naming Conventions Important Unity Variable Types Unity GameObjects and Components Summary 20.Boolean Operations and Conditionals Booleans Comparison Operators Conditional Statements Summary 21.Loops Types of Loops Set Up a Project while Loops do...while Loops for Loops for each Loops Jump Statements within Loops Summary 22.Lists and Arrays C# Collections List Array Multidimensional Arrays Jagged Arrays Whether to Use Array or List Summary Summary Exercise Moving Forward 23.Functions and Parameters Set Up the Function Examples Project Definition of a Function Function Parameters and Arguments Returning Values Proper Function Names When Should You Use Functions? Function Overloading Optional Parameters The params Keyword Recursive Functions Summary 24.Debugging Getting Started with Debugging Stepping Through Code with the Debugger Summary 25.Classes Understanding Classes Class Inheritance Summary 26.Object-Oriented Thinking The Object-Oriented Metaphor An Object-Oriented Boids Implementation Summary 27.The Agile Mentality The Manifesto for Agile Software Development Scrum Methodology Creating Your Own Burndown Charts Summary 28.Prototype 1: Apple Picker The Purpose of a Digital Prototype Preparing Coding the Apple Picker Prototype GUI and Game Management Summary Next Steps 29.Prototype 2: Mission Demolition Getting Started: Prototype 2 Game Prototype Concept Art Assets Coding the Prototype Summary Next Steps 30.Prototype 3: Space SHMUP Getting Started: Prototype 3 Setting the Scene Making the Hero Ship Adding Some Enemies Spawning Enemies at Random Setting Tags, Layers, and Physics Making the Enemies Damage the Player Restarting the Game Shooting (Finally) Adding Power-Ups Resolving Race Conditions in Code Making Enemies Drop Power-Ups Programming Other Enemies Adding Particle Effects and Background Summary Next Steps 31.Prototype 4: Prospector Solitaire Getting Started: Prototype 4 Build Settings Importing Images as Sprites Constructing Cards from Sprites The Prospector Game Implementing Prospector in Code Adding Scoring to Prospector Summary Next Steps 32.Prototype 5: Bartok Getting Started: Prototype 5 Build Settings Coding Bartok Summary Next Steps 33.Prototype 6: Word Game Getting Started: Word Game Prototype About the Word Game Parsing the Word List Setting Up the Game Laying Out the Screen Adding Interactivity Adding Scoring Adding Animation Adding Color Summary Next Steps 34.Prototype 7: QuickSnap Getting Started: QuickSnap Prototype Building the Scene Coding the Game Summary Next Steps 35.Prototype 8: Omega Mage Getting Started: Omega Mage Prototype Building the Scene The Mage Character Mouse Interaction Movement The Inventory and Selecting Elements Casting the Fire Ground Spell Changing Rooms Spawning Enemies Abstracting the Enemy Interface Making an EnemyFactory Summary Next Steps Thanks! A.Standard Project Setup Procedure B.Useful Concepts C# and Unity Coding Concepts Math Concepts Interpolation Roleplaying Games User Interface Concepts C.Online Reference Tutorials Unity Resources Programming Searching Tips Finding Assets Educational Software Discounts. Learn Game Design, Prototyping, and Programming with Today's Leading Tools: UnityTM and C# Award-winning game designer and professor Jeremy Gibson has spent the last decade teaching game design and working as an independent game developer. Over the years, his most successful students have always been those who effectively combined game design theory, concrete rapid-prototyping practices, and programming skills. Introduction to Game Design, Prototyping, and Development is the first time that all three of these disciplines have been brought together into a single book. It is a distillation of everything that Gibson has learned teaching hundreds of game designers and developers in his years at the #1 university games program in North America. It fully integrates the disciplines of game design and computer programming and helps you master the crucial practice of iterative prototyping using Unity. As the top game engine for cross-platform game development, Unity allows you to write a game once and deliver it to everything from Windows, OS X, and Linux applications to webpages and all of the most popular mobile platforms. If you want to develop games, you need strong experience with modern best practices and professional tools. There's no substitute. There's no shortcut. But you can get what you need in this book. COVERAGE INCLUDES In-depth tutorials for eight different game prototypes Developing new game design concepts Moving quickly from design concepts to working digital prototypes Improving your designs through rapid iteration Playtesting your games and interpreting the feedback that you receive Tuning games to get the right “game balance” and “game feel” Developing with Unity, today's best engine for independent game development Learning C# the right way Using Agile and Scrum to efficiently organize your game design and development process Debugging your game code Getting into the highly competitive, fast-changing game industry Addison-Wesley, 2014. — 944 p. — ISBN-10: 0-321-93316-8, ISBN-13: 978-0-321-93316-4.На англ. языке. Learn Game Design, Prototyping, and Programming with Today’s Leading Tools: Unity and C#. **__Introduction to Game Design, Prototyping, and Development__ is the first time that all three of these disciplines have been brought together into a single book.** It is a distillation of everything that Gibson has learned teaching hundreds of game designers and developers in his years at the #1 university games program in North America. It fully integrates the disciplines of game design and computer programming and helps you master the crucial practice of iterative prototyping using Unity. As the top game engine for cross-platform game development, Unity allows you to write a game once and deliver it to everything from Windows, OS X, and Linux applications to webpages and all of the most popular mobile platforms. If you want to develop games, you need strong experience with modern best practices and professional tools. There’s no substitute. There’s no shortcut. But you can get what you need in this book. Award-winning game designer and professor Jeremy Gibson has spent the last decade teaching game design and working as an independent game developer. Over the years, his most successful students have always been those who effectively combined game design theory, concrete rapid-prototyping practices, and programming skills. This hands-on guide covers both game development and design, and both Unity and C#. Written by an instructor who helped pioneer America's #1 university game development program at USC, this guide illuminates the basic tenets of game design and presents a detailed, project-based introduction to game prototyping and development, using both paper and the Unity game engine. Jeremy Gibson presents prototyping as a core game design skill (much as sketching is a core artist's skill), taking a straightforward, commonsense approach that has been refined over many years of teaching beginners. Throughout, students are encouraged to experiment on their own, and to discover that most problems have multiple solutions. "This guide illuminates the basic tenets of game design and presents a detailed, project-based introduction to game prototyping and development, using both paper and the Unity game engine. Jeremy Gibson presents prototyping as a core game design skill (much as sketching is a core artist's skill), taking a straightforward, commonsense approach that has been refined over many years of teaching beginners. Throughout, students are encouraged to experiment on their own, and to discover that most problems have multiple solutions"--Provided by publisher